Thursday, August 20, 2009

Back in Action

I am back in DC after a relaxing three-week stay in California. Even though I did not get a big bar trip, I loved going back to my home state and doing touristy things with my family (wine tasting, hiking amongst the redwoods, going to the Hollywood Bowl, visiting museums, walking along the beach) as well as doing local things (eating in-n-out and a lot of Vietnamese food). I would do a more extensive recap but there are many pictures on Facebook and, well, I am mentally still on vacation.

As great as vacation was, it felt good to be back home and not living out of a suitcase. There was a weird comfort about cleaning my room, scrubbing down the kitchen, and stocking my fridge again. I was cleansing my apartment from the Summer of Study.

Finally, after watching hours of Top Chef and Top Chef Masters yesterday, I knew I wanted to cook and had hours to do so. I have been eying Asian Noodle Salad from Pioneer Woman, and despite the lackluster produce selection in DC, it was delicious. Light and summery, had those Asian flavors I ate all summer as well as tons of vegetables-- Napa and purple cabbage, spinach, bean sprouts, red peppers, cilantro, etc. Even though I cut the recipe in half, I still have enough salad for days. Yum.